Buffon proposes a small soccer revolution
Hardly anyone knows the goal as well as Gianluigi Buffon. The Italian former keeper stood between the posts professionally for almost 30 years during his soccer career. But in retirement he noticed something: Goalkeepers have gotten too big.
Gianluigi Buffon ended his active soccer career last year, but the Italian goalkeeping legend has obviously used the time to reflect. With success: in an interview with the Italian newspaper "Tuttosport ", the now 45-year-old suggested revolutionizing the game of soccer and questioning the size of goals for once.
According to Buffon, the idea grew out of a conversation with relatives and his wife. "When I started out in 1998, I was one of the five greatest players in Serie A. Last year, when I played with Parma in Serie B, I was still one of the five greatest, but out of the twenty-two players on the pitch," explained the goalkeeper, who played 657 games in Italy's top division and led Italy to the 2006 World Cup title.
The size of the soccer goal has not changed since the 19th century. It has remained the same dimensions: eight yards (around 7.32 meters) wide and eight feet high (around 2.44 meters). But according to Buffon, this poses a problem: players have become taller and more athletic over the past 150 years or so. The measurements back then were "perhaps too big, but then they were just right over a period of 50 to 60 years". But if you look at some players and goalkeepers now, it could be that they have become too small.
There used to be no crossbar either
However, the size of the goalkeepers is not the only factor in Buffon's considerations. "It must also be said that players have become faster, more unpredictable and stronger when shooting." Their technique has also improved, but Buffon uses a statistic to illustrate the imbalance: "Thirty years ago, you scored ten goals for 50 shots, today it's three. It's much more difficult to score from distance with a two-meter goalkeeper."
In the end, the ex-goalkeeper can't decide how big the soccer goals in the world are anyway - others do that. And the curious thing is that there was actually a time in soccer when the goals were open at the top. According to the German Bundesliga website, it took several years for a crossbar to find its way into the rules. It was not until 1866 that a crossbar at a certain height above the goal line became mandatory. Before that, it didn't matter how tall a goalkeeper was.
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Buffon suggests changing the size of soccer goals in response to taller, more athletic players, citing that goalkeepers have become too small for current standards. In the past, goalkeepers weren't required to have a crossbar, making goal sizes more variable.
Source: www.ntv.de
